Mounting evidence points to potential health risks of pyrethroids and adjuvants contained in household pesticides. The fact that these chemicals persist on indoor surfaces and accumulate in house dust raises concerns about the ubiquitous use of pesticides in homes. Programs aimed for mitigating household pesticide use by educating the public typically do not relate to a potentially critical factor that may lead to excessive or unnecessary use of pesticides: household members’ feelings of fear, disgust, or aversion to insects and other arthropods (henceforth “insect aversion”). We therefore aimed to explore the interactions between insect aversion and pesticide use in 70 families in Israel. We used a standard computerized test with cockroach pictures to assess insect aversion level and a questionnaire-based interview to assess pesticide use, perceived infestation levels and other factors that may influence the participants’ tendency to use pesticides. Perceived infestation levels and the tendency to use pesticides were positively correlated with pesticide use, but contrary to our hypothesis, we found no correlation between insect aversion level and pesticide use. We conclude that in the population we sampled, pesticide use is affected not by insect aversion, but by the perceived level of infestation and by household members’ attitudes and preferences. Further research in different societies is essential for a better understanding of how personal and psychological factors affect household pesticide use. Such understanding may improve efforts to reduce household pesticide use.
